New Delhi: It has been both bouquets and brickbats for the work done by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the various noteworthy projects undertaken by it include Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas, the Arjun tank and missiles like the Agni series. Less well-known has been the DRDO’s work on cutting-edge technologies and weapons, which are yet to enter widespread operational service worldwide.
One such area is the field of ‘directed-energy weapons’ (DEW). In layman’s parlance, a directed-energy weapon damages or destroys its target using focussed energy by means of lasers, microwaves or particle beams.
Recently, US defence website Defense News reviewed the status of hypersonic weapons and DEW programmes worldwide and it reported that DRDO has sought US$100 million from the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to develop a high-power laser weapon.
“The classified project, dubbed DURGA II (Directionally Unrestricted Ray-Gun Array), will see the Indian Army receive the 100-kilowatt, lightweight directed-energy system, a service official told Defense News. A senior DRDO scientist said on condition of anonymity that the DURGA II programme is currently in the concept stage. He said the organisation is developing and improving various laser-generation techniques using solid state, fibre and chemical lasers for defensive and offensive use.
The scientist also said DURGA II is to be integrated with land-, sea- and air-based platforms,” Defense News reported.
The Defense News report noted the Laser Science and Technology Centre at Delhi was the lead laboratory in developing laser weapons. “The centre has so far made a 25-kilowatt laser that can target a ballistic missile during its terminal phase at a maximum distance of five kilometers,” Defense News reported.
Interestingly, the existence of a DURGA project has been reported for around two decades now, dating back to the early 2000s. A study by Indian Air Force officer KK Nair published by the United Service Institution of India (USI) in 2008 referred to the Directionally Unrestricted Ray-Gun Array (DURGA), and noted there was little progress in the project.
In 2017, DRDO tested a one kW laser weapon mounted on a truck at a test facility in Chitradurga.
In January, US aerospace giant Lockheed Martin delivered the first unit of its High Energy Laser with Integrated Optical-dazzler and Surveillance (HELIOS) laser system to that country’s Navy. The HELIOS has power in excess of 60kW and is used primarily to damage smaller surface ships and drones. However, according to reports, upgrades to HELIOS with increased power would enable the system to target anti-ship missiles fired at ships.
